Monolith Foundation:
Built to Last a
“1000 Years”
by P. Kumar Mehta and Wilbert S. Langley
A
yellow, ready-mixed concrete truck arrives at the con-
struction site. Amidst sounds from a Balinese gong
and Sanskrit chants from a fire ceremony, saffron-
robed monks and a host of onlookers welcome the truck.
The same ceremonial reception greets every one of the 54
truckloads of concrete that, by day’s end, deposit approxi-
mately 380 m3 (500 yd3 ) of concrete into the formwork. This
is the unusual setting under which an
unusual structure — the first of the
two slabs of the raft foundation for
the first all-stone Hindu Temple in
America — is being built. The
unreinforced concrete monoliths,
each 36 m (117 ft) long, 17 m (56 ft)
wide, and 0.61 m (2 ft) thick, are re-
quired to remain crack-free during
their specified 1000 years service life.
Approximately 4000 km (2500 mi)
to the west of the U.S. mainland, on
the tranquil island of Kaua’i in the
middle of the Pacific Ocean, a mag-
nificent temple made of hand-carved
granite stone is under construction
(Fig. 1). Exquisitely carved beams
and segments of columns from India
will be imported and assembled in
Kaua’i to build this temple. As the
structure is being erected on a bed of
soft clay, the architect specified a
concrete foundation that will support
2000 tons (1814 tons (metric)) of
stonework without any significant Fig. 1 — Carved granite
settling and without cracking; other- for the temple.
wise, the granite roof beams would
separate from the columns and fall.
Originally, the structural design was based on a monolith
raft foundation, 36 x 17 x 1 m (117 x 56 x 3 ft) in size;
however, due to the inability of the local ready-mixed con-
crete company to supply 612 m3 (810 yd3 ) of concrete in
1 day, it was decided to install a foundation composed of
two independent, parallel monolith slabs, each 36 x 17 x
0.61 m (117 x 56 x 2 ft) in size.
The foundation’s soil consists of soft clay for which the
July 2000
depth has not been well defined due to limited soil-investi-
gation equipment on the island. The owners, in consultation
with the materials consultants, decided to surcharge the foun-
dation rather than import drilling equipment. To control po-
tential settlement cracking during construction of the foun-
dation, the soil was heavily compacted, and a base course
of 1 m (3.28 ft) thick, well-compacted gravel was added in
the excavated clay underneath the con-
crete foundation. The completed foun-
dation will have an additional 2.5 m
(8.2 ft) of soil to eliminate residual
settlement.
In addition to careful attention to the
selection of materials and proportions
for the concrete mixture, thermal
cracking during construction was con-
trolled by constructing the slabs with
1-week intervals between the two
castings, discussed as follows.
Preliminary investigation
Most of the concrete structures built
during this century are not expected
to last for 100 years because portland
cement concrete cracks and deterio-
rates due to a number of interrelated
causes such as thermal contraction,
drying shrinkage, exposure to cycles
of freezing and thawing, corrosion of
embedded steel, alkali-aggregate re-
action, and sulfate attack. In contrast,
pillar components some of the Roman structures built ap-
proximately 2000 years ago are still
in good condition. Therefore, to build
long-lasting concrete structures in the future, it is prudent to
begin with a basic knowledge of the methods and materials
that were used in the construction of ancient structures that
have endured for centuries.
The Pantheon in Rome, built by the emperor Hadrian in
128 A.D., is a circular building of concrete with 6.1 m
(20 ft) thick walls and a dome measuring 43.3 m (142 ft) in
diameter that rises to a height of 21.6 m (71 ft) above its
base. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica , 1 the
27
exact method of construction is unknown; however, two fac-
tors have contributed to the success of the building that stands
today entirely in its original form, namely: the excellent qual-
ity of the mortar in the concrete mixture, and the careful
selection and grading of the aggregate material. Similarly,
in regard to the Roman aqueducts, Malinowski2 credits the
construction methods as well as the high quality of a well-
compacted, nonshrinking concrete for excellent durability
of crack-free canal linings that were installed without any
construction joints. According to Lea,3 both the Greeks and
the Romans were aware that certain volcanic materials (later
known as pozzolans), when finely ground and mixed with
lime and sand, yielded a mortar that was not only
cementitious but also water resistant. There is evidence that
Greeks and Romans also used crushed potshards and tiles as
artificial pozzolans.
In comparison with the portland cement concrete struc-
tures of today that crack within a few months of comple-
tion, why has the ancient lime-pozzolan concrete remained
crack-free after 2000 years of service? To build a long-
lasting concrete structure, it is important to find an answer
to this question.
Ancient concrete mixtures were generally characterized
by low cementitious material content, low water content (con-
solidation was achieved by tamping), a very slow rate of
strength development, and almost no shrinkage strains from
cooling and drying. Driven by the perception that high-speed
construction translates to financial gains, the portland ce-
ment concrete mixtures of today usually contain a high ce-
ment content of very reactive and finely ground cement that
hydrates fast and develops not only high strength and a high
modulus of elasticity, but also a high heat of hydration at
very early ages. Early-age cracking in modern portland ce-
ment concrete is mainly attributable to shrinkage strain from
cooling and drying. Under the restraining conditions in hard-
ened concrete, the shrinkage strains induce a tensile stress,
and the material cracks when this tensile stress exceeds its
tensile strength. If the elastic modulus happens to be low
and the stress relief due to creep is high, however, the poten-
tial for cracking is reduced.
In modern construction practice, it is assumed that con-
crete will crack due to its high early strength, high modulus
of elasticity, and low creep capacity. The crack widths are
limited by the use of steel reinforcement, but the substitu-
tion of a few wide cracks by numerous immeasurable minor
cracks adversely affects the overall impermeability of con-
crete, which is the key to premature structural deterioration
from corrosion of the reinforcement, freezing and thawing
cycles, and alkali-aggregate reaction. Construction joints are
provided to control cracking, but they are a perpetual source
of leakage and also cause long-term durability problems.
One obvious solution is to go back to the types of concrete
mixtures used in the past, which are known to have under-
gone little or no shrinkage. But how can this be accomplished
with modern concrete-making materials and construction
schedules? This was the challenge that would guide the se-
lection of materials, mixture proportions, and construction
practice for the Kaua’i Temple concrete foundation. In fact,
the decision not to use any reinforcing steel and construc-
tion joints in either of the two concrete slabs of rather large
size (36 x 17 x 0.61 m (117 x 56 x 2 ft)) could be justified
only on the assumption that the tensile stresses from the ther-
mal and drying shrinkage effects would be negligible.
28
Table 1 — Properties of portland cement
Parameter Value, %
C3S 62
C2S 14
C4AF 10
C3A 7
Blaine fineness 400 m2/kg
Table 2 — Properties of Class F fly ash
Parameter Value
Residue on No. 325 sieve 25 %
Relative density 2.17
Loss on ignition <1%
Water requirement 96 %
Strength-activity index
83 %
(with portland cement)
Concrete-making materials
In Kaua’i, the choices for concrete-making materials were
limited by the fact that only one ready-mixed concrete plant
was able to furnish 500 yd3 (380 m3 ) of concrete in an 8- to
10-hour period. Properties of the cement, which meets ASTM
C 150, are shown in Table 1.
Crushed basalt was used as the coarse aggregate, and sand
with a fineness modulus of 2.83, made from crushed calcar-
eous stone, was used as the fine aggregate. To reduce the
cement paste content of the concrete mixture, two coarse-
aggregate fractions, ASTM No. 57 (1 in. [25 mm] MSA)
and ASTM No. 8 (3/8 in. [10 mm] MSA) were blended in a
60 to 40% ratio by mass, respectively. Air-entraining and
water-reducing admixtures, both normal and high range, were
used to achieve the desired workability of fresh concrete at
low cement and water contents. The admixtures were
necessary due to the rough texture of both the sand and the
coarse aggregate.
To achieve the desired finishing characteristics and
workability for the proper consolidation of fresh concrete
by vibration, a minimum cement content of about 300 kg/m3
(500 lb/yd3 ) is generally needed, regardless of the strength
requirements. Even at such a low cement content with nor-
mal portland cement, the temperature increase in concrete
due to heat of hydration would be too high to prevent ther-
mal-shrinkage cracking unless special cooling methods were
used. A relatively inexpensive approach is to replace a por-
tion of the portland cement with a natural or by-product poz-
zolanic material such as fly ash.
The control of thermal cracking in massive concrete mem-
bers was the primary objective behind the development of
high-volume fly ash (HVFA) concrete technology about
10 years ago by Malhotra.4 The replacement of up to 60%
Concrete International
Table 3 — Trial mixture proportions and properties of dation with immersion vibrators. The original design required
concrete a 20 MPa (3000 psi) 28-day compressive strength, but the
structural engineer accepted the design strength at 90 days
Concrete mixture proportions instead of 28 days because no structural loading was expected
Parameter Lab trial mixture Field trial mixture before 90 days.
For the production of an essentially nonshrinking concrete,
3
90 kg/m 106 kg/m3 certain maximum limits on the total binder content (cement
Portland cement
(150 lb/yd 3) (180 lb/yd3) plus fly ash) and the total water content were assumed in the
development of the laboratory trial mixtures. The limits
159 kg/m3 142 kg/m3
Class F fly ash selected were 250 kg/m3 (425 lb/yd3 ) for the total binder
(270 lb/yd 3) (240 lb/yd3)
content and 110 kg/m3 (186 lb/yd3 ) for the total water con-
103 kg/m3 100 kg/m3 tent. To reduce the potential for thermal cracking, an arbi-
Water
(175 lb/yd 3) (270 lb/yd3) trary value of 15 C (27 F) was chosen for the maximum per-
missible temperature rise in the concrete. From experience,
935 kg/m3 944 kg/m3 it was expected that the binder would consist of at least 50%
Fine aggregate
(1585 lb/yd3) (1600 lb/yd3) fly ash by mass; however, the exact ratio of fly ash to port-
Coarse 1130 kg/m3 1121 kg/m3 land cement in the binder would have to be determined from
aggregate (1915 lb/yd3) (1900 lb/yd3) the workability, strength, and the adiabatic temperature-rise
characteristics of the trial mixtures.
Normal water- After several laboratory trials, a concrete mixture was
770 mL/m3 770 mL/m3
reducing found in the left-hand column of Table 3 that seemed to sat-
(20 oz/yd3) (20 oz/yd3)
admixture isfy the workability and adiabatic temperature-rise criteria
2320 mL/m3 3480 mL/m3
but was somewhat deficient in meeting the 90-day strength
HRWRA requirement. Subsequently, for the mock-up mixture used in
(60 oz/yd3) (90 oz/yd3)
the field trial, the ratio of cement to fly ash was slightly raised,
Air-entraining 116 mL/m3 116 mL/m3 and the water content was slightly lowered with an increased
admixture (3 oz/yd 3) (3 oz/yd3) dosage of the high-range water-reducing admixture
(HRWRA). This concrete mixture (right-hand column, Table 3)
Slump 75 mm (3 in.) 150 mm (6 in.)
met all the specified requirements and was used for the con-
Air content 4.5% 3.5% struction of slabs.

Adiabatic Construction and curing

10 C (18 F) 12 C (21 F)
temperature rise
Compressive strength
3 days — 5.5 MPa (800 psi)
7 days 6.2 MPa (900 psi) 9.6 MPa (1250 psi)
28 days 12.4 MPa (1795 psi) 15.9 MPa (2300 psi)
90 days 16.5 MPa (2400 psi) 24.1 MPa (3500 psi)
portland cement by ASTM Class F fly ash, in accordance
with the HVFA concrete technology, provided the basis for
the development of trial-batch mixtures investigated for the
construction of the Kaua’i Temple foundation; no commer-
cially available sources of such materials are found in Kaua’i
or neighboring islands. Consequently, Class F fly ash, meet-
ing ASTM C 618, had to be imported in super sacks from a
U.S. west coast coal-fired power plant at a cost of approxi-
mately $200 per ton. Important properties of the material
are outlined in Table 2.
Development of mixture proportions
The objective of mixture proportioning was to develop a
concrete mixture that would have negligible thermal shrink-
age and drying shrinkage, while possessing the workability
characteristics acceptable to the contractor and strength
characteristics acceptable to the structural designer. An
air-entrained concrete (4% to 5% total air) with 100 to 150
mm (4 to 6 in.) slump was preferred by the contractor for
ease of placement with truck chutes and for proper consoli-
For the success of the project, three items were singled out
for special attention by the authors: enthusiastic support from
the key personnel involved in construction; strict vigilance
of the quality and uniformity of ready-mixed concrete at the
time of placement; and extraordinary precautions for proper
curing. In Kaua’i, fly ash had never been used in concrete,
nor had anyone ever heard of concrete mixtures with such a
low cement content and water content. Therefore, to put the
ready-mixed concrete plant operator and the construction su-
pervisors at ease, educational meetings were held at which
the challenging goal of making a crack-free concrete struc-
ture was presented, and the technology to achieve it was thor-
oughly explained.
Any apprehensions regarding the handling characteristic
of high-volume fly-ash (HVFA) concrete were subsequently
dismissed when the crew responsible for transportation,
placement, and consolidation of concrete for the 3.75 m3
(5 yd 3 ) mock-up slab witnessed the effortless flowability of
the material, without segregation. The field trial also taught
an important lesson to the truck drivers, namely, that it was
possible to recover the slump lost during transit by adding a
small amount of the high-range water reducer rather than
adding water, which is a common practice.
In August, the weather in Kaua’i remains generally warm;
surprisingly, the ambient temperature varies within a nar-
row range from 21C (70 F) in the early morning to 30 C (86
F) in the afternoon. For making 760 m3 (1000 yd3 ) of con-
crete needed for both slabs, the same mixture proportions
were used as for the field trial mixture (Table 3), except that
only 2/3 of the dosage—2320 mL/m3 (60 oz/yd3 )—of a naph-
thalene-based, high-range water reducer was added at the

July 2000 29
batch plant. The balance 1/3—1160 mL/m3 (30 oz/yd3 ) — Table 4 — Average compressive strength of con-
was saved for slump adjustment at the job site, where the crete cylinders, MPa (psi)
admixture supplier installed a special dispenser for this
purpose.
The lower slab was installed on August 21, 1999. When Test age Lower slab Upper slab
the first truck arrived at the construction site around 7 a.m.,
a sample of concrete was taken for testing the quality and 3 days 6.0 (870) 7.3 (1065)
adjustment of slump. The air content was 7%, the tempera-
ture was 26 C (79 F), and, as expected, the slump had 7 days 9.0 (1300) 10.9 (1580)
re duced from the original 150 mm (6 in.) at the batch plant
to 75 mm (3 in.) during the 45 min. transit time. Approxi-
28 days 14.8 (2145) 17.5 (2540)
mately 1 L/m3 (26 oz/yd3 ) of the high-range water-reducer
was added to restore the slump back to 150 mm (6 in.) be-
fore the concrete was placed. Because the construction man- 90 days 23.1 (3350) 27.6 (4000)
ager had continuous telephone linkage with the ready-mixed
Note: The data show the average strengths of 6 x 12 in. (150 x 300 mm) cylinders
concrete plant operator, the high air content and other neces- made from typical samples of field concrete with approximately 6 in. (150 mm)
sary mixture adjustments were brought under control quickly slump and 4.5% air content. The cylinders were cast at the job site from fresh
concrete discharged from the mixer trucks. Some of the specimens were tested at
by slight changes in the dosage of the concrete admixtures. 3 days; others were left undisturbed in the molds for 7 days at the field tempera-
The quality and uniformity of the concrete from the first ture that varied from 21 to 30 C (70 to 85 F). Thereafter, the test specimens were
five truckloads were closely monitored; after which, every demolded and taken to the laboratory for moist curing, and tested under standard
ASTM conditions.
third truckload was tested. The responsibility for the slump
adjustment was shared between the construction foreman and
the admixture suppliers’ field representative who was present brane curing; however, this problem can be resolved with
at the job site; the transit mixer truck drivers were strictly simple innovations, described as follows.
forbidden to add any water to the concrete. From every 100 m3 On the morning of August 22, the visqueen sheets cover-
(130 yd3 ) of concrete, twelve cylinders were cast for testing ing the slab were momentarily removed so the workers could
the compressive strength at 3, 7, 28, and 90 days. The test place an 8 to 10 mm (.31 to .39 in.) thick, water-soaked layer
results are shown in Table 4. of burlap directly on top of the concrete. Then the visqueen
Proper concrete curing procedures were absolutely essential covering was restored to prevent quick drying of the burlap
to prevent development of stress due to the thermal and dry- (Fig. 3). Due to the heat of hydration, the temperature of the
ing shrinkage. Given the no-bleeding characteristic of con- concrete rose by 13 C (23 F) within 24 h of casting. As a
crete containing a high volume of fly ash, low unit-water result of direct exposure to the sun, in spite of occasional
content, and the warm and windy climate under which the rain showers, some dry patches appeared in the burlap. By
concrete was placed, it was also necessary to avoid plastic frequent inspections during the daytime and by promptly
shrinkage due to rapid loss of moisture from the surface. rewetting the dried spots of burlap, an uninterrupted water
Immediately after each screeding operation, a thin film of a curing was ensured.
monomer was sprayed on the concrete surface, which was During the next 6 days, the concrete temperature in the
then covered by a thick visqueen sheet (Fig. 2). slab dropped at the rate of about 1.7 C (3.0 F) per day. There-
Tests on the concrete mixture showed that the material set fore, on the morning of August 28, the concrete temperature
in approximately 8 h and devel-
oped about 2 MPa (300 psi)
strength in 16 h. The slab was,
therefore, left undisturbed over-
night. The mandatory moist-cur-
ing period started from the fol-
lowing morning when it was con-
sidered safe to walk on the slab
without causing any damage.
Studies have shown that water
curing of concrete, especially the
HVFA concrete, is essential for
the development of optimum
strength and for the control of
both thermal shrinkage and dry-
ing shrinkage. Water curing helps
to cool the warm concrete at a
relatively faster rate during the
first week of casting when the
material has a low elastic modu-
lus and a high creep. Excessive
labor cost is often cited as the
reason why water curing is not
preferred in comparison to mem-
Fig. 2 — Application of burlap and moisture.

30 Concrete International
Table 5 — Temperature history, C (F) Assessing the results
At the time of this article, more than 9 months has passed
Date Lower slab Upper slab since the installation of the large, unreinforced concrete
Aug. 21 27 (80) — monoliths that comprise the raft foundation for the stone
temple in Kaua’i. The slabs look beautiful; careful examina-
Aug. 22 40 (104) — tion of the exposed surface has shown no evidence of any
cracking. In addition to the highly motivated team of indi-
Aug. 28 30 (86) 27 (81) viduals directly involved in the construction, the authors
Aug. 29 — 40 (104) believe that the following two factors associated with warm-
weather construction should not be overlooked when assess-
Aug. 31 38 (100) — ing the success of the project.
First, by limiting the cement content to 106 kg/m3
Sept. 4 35 (95) 32 (90) (180 lb/yd 3 ) it was possible to restrict the autogenous tem-
perature rise in concrete in the first 24 h to 13 C (23 F).
Sept. 10 34 (94) 30 (86)
Secondly, the use of relatively high quantities of fly ash sig-
Sept. 25 30 (87) 27 (81) nificantly reduced the rate of strength gain and stiffness.
During the period for 6 days after concrete placement, when
the concrete was still less stiff (with an average compressive
in the lower slab was down to almost 30 C (86 F), when the strength below 10 MPa [1450 psi]), the midslab temperature
construction crew was ready to cast the upper slab. More- dropped at an average rate of 1.5 C (2.7 F) per day. After
over, as a consequence of continuous wet and warm curing 2 weeks of casting, when the concrete had become stronger
for a week, the concrete in the lower slab had reached 9 MPa and stiffer, the slabs cooled down at a very slow rate of 0.24 C
(1300 psi) compressive strength, which was adequate to with- (0.43 F) per day. This interplay between the concrete strength
stand the traffic loads for the new placement. Table 5 shows or stiffness and the slow cooling rate in the Kaua’i weather
the dates and temperature readings for the lower and upper was believed to be an important factor in preventing thermal
slabs. cracking. Also, subsequent to the placement of the upper
Without dismantling the first slab formwork, additional slab, the temperature of the lower slab started to rise again.
formwork was built for placement of the upper slab exactly A peak temperature rise of 8 C (14 F) was reached in 4 days
on top of the lower slab. The two slabs were separated by a before it started to drop again.
“slipsheet” consisting of two layers of heavy-duty visqueen. From the strength data in Table 4, the average compres-
This eliminated moisture transfer to the lower slab and re- sive strength of the concrete mixture increased from 10 MPa
strain to any movement from future volume changes in (1450 psi) at 7 days to about 16 MPa (2320 psi) at 28 days—
the upper slab. The quality control, casting, and curing pro- a 60% increase. Moreover, between 28 and 90 days the
cedures for the second slab, fabricated on August 28, were av erage strength increased from 16 to 25.4 MPa (2320 to
es sentially the same as for the first slab. To reduce the dry- 3685 psi), which corresponds to a further 60% increase. There
ing shrinkage, moist curing continued for 2 weeks, and there- is nothing unusual about the characteristics of the portland
after, the protective surface cover of burlap and visqueen cement and the fly ash used. The explanation lies in the com-
was left in place for several additional weeks. bination of low water content and warm curing temperatures
at which the hydration reac-
tions of both cement and fly ash
are greatly accelerated. Con-
sequently, in spite of the low
cement content (106 kg/m3
[180 lb/yd 3 ]), the 1-day
strength of the concrete mixture
was adequate for minor con-
struction activity at the job site,
the 7-day strength was ad -
equate for formwork removal,
and the 90-day strength was
25% greater than the specified
design strength. The temple
construction is not expected to
begin before 1 year, when the
concrete strength in the foun-
dation is expected to be twice
as much as the design strength.
This observation is highly sig-
nificant for sustainable devel-
opment of the concrete indus-
try during the 21st century,
b e cause a large amount of
Fig. 3 — Burlap covered with visqueen sheet to prevent drying.

July 2000 31
construction activity is projected to occur in the warm re-
gions of the world (Asia, Africa, and South America).
The UN Intergovernmental Plan on Climate Change has
concluded that our world is becoming stormier due to glo-
bal warming caused by the unprecedented increase of car-
bon dioxide emissions.5 The world production of portland
cement is responsible for more than 1 billion tons, or approxi-
mately 7% of the total carbon dioxide loading of the envi-
ronment. The use of high volumes of fly ash or slag as a
cement-replacement material in concrete has shown a way
by which the housing and infrastructure needs of industri-
ally developing countries can be successfully met without
increasing the production capacity of the portland cement
industry.6 If built with conventional technology, the Kaua’i
temple foundation project would have used approximately
230 tons (209 tons [metric]) of portland cement and 75 tons
(68 tons [metric]) of reinforcing steel. Instead, by using only
80 tons (73 tons [metric]) of cement and no reinforcing steel,
this project saved the carbon dioxide loading of the envi-
ronment by 225 tons (204 tons [metric]). (Both portland ce-
ment and steel productions account for one tonne of carbon
dioxide per tonne for either of the materials). This may ap-
pear to be insignificant, but it certainly sets a trend that is
worthy of emulation by the concrete construction industry
for building sustainable and durable structures in the future.
Conclusion
Many in the concrete construction industry still suffer from
an old myth that fly ash is a cheap substitute for portland
cement. This simply is not true with modern fly ashes if one
pays proper attention to materials, mixture proportions, and
the curing of concrete. Without fly ash, the workability and
durability of concrete in the structure described in this ar-
ticle could not have been achieved. If fly ash was a cheap
substitute or only a supplement to cement, why would some-
one pay three times as much for it to replace cement? This
indeed is the most convincing argument that materials like
fly ash and slag are complementary to portland cement, be-
cause without them, it would not be possible to build du-
rable and sustainable concrete structures.
The maximum permissible content of fly ash in blended
portland-pozzolan cement is 40% by mass, according to
ASTM, and even less according to other standards. (For ex-
ample, it is 25% according to the Indian Standard Specifi-
cation.) In practice, the fly-ash content seldom exceeds 20%
whether it is marketed as portland-pozzolan cement or is
incorporated directly into concrete as a cement admixture
in a ready-mixed concrete plant. Such prescriptive limits,
like the maximum permissible fly ash content in blended
cements and the minimum required portland cement con-
tent in codes of recommended practice, are archaic and rel-
ics of the past. They ought to be scrapped and replaced with
performance-oriented standards that are flexible enough to
allow the use of larger amounts of industrial by-products in
concrete, particularly under warm environmental conditions.
HVFA or high-volume slag concrete mixtures exhibit a slow
rate of strength development, but when necessary, this can
be accelerated to acceptable values by the use of high-range
water reducers or other methods.
Finally, the technology of building an unreinforced struc-
32
ture with HVFA concrete is described here; however, for a
variety of reasons, many of the concrete structure will have
to be reinforced with steel even when the concrete mixture
is designed for little or no tensile stress from thermal and
drying shrinkage effects. Langley7 has discussed case histo-
ries showing the application of the HVFA concrete technol-
ogy for making reinforced concrete columns, beams, and
foundations. Obviously, reinforced concrete structures are
not expected to endure for 1000 years; however, their dura-
bility would be considerably enhanced if they can remain
free from cracking for a long time during the service life.
References
1. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15th Edition, 1986.
2. Malinowski, R., “Concrete and Mortars in Ancient Aqueducts,” Con-
crete International, V. 1, No. 1, Jan. 1979, pp. 66-76.
3. Lea, F.M., The Chemistry of Cement and Concrete, Chemical Pub-
lishing Co., 3rd Edition, 1971.
4. Malhotra, V.M., “Making Concrete Greener with Fly Ash,” Concrete
International, V. 21, No. 5, May 1999, pp. 61-66.
5. Kyoto Protocol, Framework Convention on Climate Change, Dec.
1997.
6. Mehta, P.K., “Concrete Technology for Sustainable Development,”
Concrete International, V. 21, No. 11, Nov. 1999, pp. 47-53.
7. Langley, W.S., “Practical Uses for High Volume Fly Ash Concrete
Utilizing a Low Calcium Fly Ash,” Concrete Technology for Sustainable
Development in the Twenty – First Century, Hyderabad, India, Feb. 9-11,
1999, pp.65-96.
Selected for reader interest by the editors.
P. Kumar Mehta is Professor Emeri-
tus of civil engineering, University of
California, Berkeley, Calif. He recently
retired after 30 years on the faculty
there. A Fellow of ACI, he has
authored numerous papers on the
properties of concrete and
cementitious building materials. At the
recent convention in Chicago, Ill., he
was presented with ACI’s Construc-
tion Practice Award for a July 1997 article, published in
Concrete International, on concrete durability issues for
the 21st century.
ACI Fellow Wilbert S. Langley, is
President of W.S. Langley Concrete
& Materials Technology Inc. He is
chairman of CSA A23.1 and A23.2
“Concrete Materials and Methods of
Concrete Construction” and “Methods
of Test for Concrete,” respectively. He
has provided consulting services to
many large construction projects such
as the Confederation Bridge and the
Hibernia Platform. He has authored numerous papers on
various aspects of concrete including high-performance
concrete, HVFA concrete and alkali-aggregate reactivity.
Concrete International